How to Start a Business in Bahrain

If you are interested in moving abroad to live and work in Bahrain by starting a business you should know that there are certain requirements and conditions that must be met in order for you to be able to do that. Unlike coming to Bahrain to be self employed you will not need to have a sponsor in order to come to the country. However you will have to meet other requirements including having certain amounts of liquid assets that you are able to invest in the country.

Before packing everything you own up and coming to Bahrain to embark on the quest of starting a business there are some preliminary steps that you should first take prior to taking that plunge. You should not come to Bahrain blind of the region and try to start up a business or you just might see it fail. You should at least visit the area of interest a few times and talk to the locals to get a feel for if your business idea would be a successful one. You will want to have a good business plan where you have research the local market and forecasted your results. If you have a solid plan you may be able to get local financial support for your endeavor. If not you will need to have other means to finance your new business in Bahrain.

Under the current law, any foreigner that wants to start a business in Bahrain is required to have a local partner that holds a majority interest in the company. That means that the local partner has the authority to control the business including closing it up. Your local partner can be either an individual person or a company. You partner is not required to contribute financially to your business at all.

When you get your business registered in Bahrain you will have to go to the Ministry of Commerce and show proof to them than you have a large sum of money to invest. The amount that you need tends to vary but is usually somewhere between $10,000 and $50,000. This investment is considered to be a guarantee against any liabilities. You are able to withdraw the money though fairly soon after investing it with no harsh consequences.

It will be in your best interest to find your self a good local lawyer that is familiar with the steps of starting a business in Bahrain.

If you do not want to start a business from the ground up, so to speak, you can also buy an existing business in Bahrain. The process for doing that is a bit more straightforward. And it does not have the requirements of lodging capital or having a sponsor or local partner. The process is simple as all you need to do is find a place for sale, agree on a price and fill out the ownership transfer paperwork. A good place to get information on this is the local Chamber of Commerce in Bahrain.